The present invention relates to a vehicle having an articulated chassis and particularly to a high clearance farm tractor having an improved chassis arrangement and interchangeable front mounted attachments enabling the tractor to perform a variety of functions.
Vehicles, including farm tractors, having an articulated chassis are known. Although such conventional vehicles may be adequate for their intended purposes under many conditions, they suffer from various performance related limitations.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,976,302 granted to Hammarstrand on Aug. 24, 1976 describes a vehicle with a chassis having articulated front and rear sections and an axle system which permits the front and rear sections to oscillate. Although this machine is suited for use in difficult terrain, the conventional placement of a rear cab and a forward engine does not make it suitable for operations such as swathing and spraying. The axle system described may also be disadvantageously configured or unnecessarily complicated for farm use.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome such difficulties present in conventional articulated vehicles. It is another object of the present invention to improve the stability of the farm tractor while providing improved handling and comfort to the operator. A further object is to reduce crop damage caused by the vehicle during operations such as swathing.
Advantages of the present vehicle include reduced crop damage caused by the vehicle, a higher clearance, higher speeds both during operation and transport, increased stability and manoeuvrability and better operator comfort and visibility.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle capable of receiving interchangeable front mounted attachments, the vehicle comprising: a chassis having a front section and a rear section, each section supported by respective wheels; active suspension means for mounting the wheels to the chassis; an operator""s cab mounted on the front section; means on the front section for mounting interchangeably one of a plurality of different attachments; an engine mounted on the rear section for propelling the vehicle; and an oscillating articulated joint connecting the front and rear sections, wherein the front and rear wheels are spaced from the joint so that the path of the rear wheels substantially follows the path of the front wheels when the vehicle turns.